CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent

Date of Issue: January 16, 2012

Many thanks for my friends, Emilia Moon De-Kemp for the postage paid card and Mr. Jack Dawn for the miniature sheet on First Day Cover.

Canada Post introduced set of five new definitive stamps on theme - Canadian Pride. On one stamp is depicted Canadian Coast Guard Ship and icebreaker - Louis S. St.Laurent. The year 2012 also marks the 50th Anniversary of the Canadian Coast Guard, which was formed on January 26, 1962.

Named after the 12th Prime Minister of Canada, The Right Honorable Louis St. Laurent, PC CC QC LLD DCL LLL BA. The vessel is classed a "Heavy Arctic Icebreaker" and is the largest icebreaker and flagship of the CCG.

Built in 1969 by Canadian Vickers Limited in Montreal, Quebec, CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent underwent an extensive and costly modernization at Halifax Shipyard Ltd. in Halifax, Nova Scotia between 1988-1993.

She was based at CCG Base Dartmouth in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia for a large majority of her career, but has recently been transferred to St. Johns, Newfoundland and Labrador.

On August 22, 1994, Louis S. St-Laurent and USCGC Polar Sea (WAGB-11) became the first North American surface vessels to reach the North Pole.

The vessel was originally scheduled to be decommissioned in 2000 however a refit extended the decommissioning date to 2017.

Source: Wikipedia

Titanic Postage paid Postcard - Canada

Apart from the stamps, Canada Post also issued set of 2 prepaid (postage paid) postcards with the same design as of the stamps. The above is one such postcard sent by Postcrossing.com user, Carole.

Titanic Postcard with Titanic Stamp from Canada

Picture collage showing postcard to commemorate Centenary of RMS Titanic; stern view and the recently issued stamp of Canada. The card was posted on same day of issue of the stamp, on April 05, 2012.

The details about this stamp on miniature sheet is already available in another post. Click here to read.

Thanks again to my friend in Toronto, Canada - Emilia Moon-De Kemp.

Titanic MS from Canada

Date of Issue: April 05, 2012

Many thanks to my friend, Emilia Moon-De Kemp from Canada for sending me this fabulous looking miniature sheet featuring the RMS Titanic issued to commemorate the 100 years of the sinking of the ship. The envelope was posted on same day of stamp issue.

The Souvenir Sheet features the international rate stamp, which shows a full color side illustration of the Titanic, sailing on a calm ocean. Titanic was almost 280 meters (883 feet) in length and, at the time, it was the largest passenger steamship in the world.

Marked on the map behind the ship are Southampton (England), Cape Race (Newfoundland) and Halifax (Nova Scotia)—all prominent locations in Titanic’s story.

Southampton is where the Titanic started her much-anticipated maiden voyage on April 10, 1912. There were more than 2,220 people on board.

It was from Cape Race that a team working at the Canadian Marconi company’s wireless station heard Titanic’s early distress call. It came through late in the evening on April 14, 1912.

Halifax (Nova Scotia, Canada) became the centre of the recovery efforts after the tragic sinking on April 15, 1912. The people of Halifax, faced with a grim duty, stepped up and dealt with the aftermath in a respectful and dignified way.

Near the base of the stamp appears the House Flag of the White Star Line (Titanic’s owners). This red flag—with its white five-pointed star and v-shaped tail—was flown from the top of Titanic’s main mast.

Text Source: Canada Post

Bluenose Schooner

Date of Issue: 1928-29
Scott #: 158, SG #: 284

I am very happy to own this perfectly centered MNH 50c stamp of Bluenose schooner, as it was my longtime dream to have it in my collection and this became true when I made a bid at the Sandafayre auction house, February 14, 2012.

This stamp is widely cited among philatelists to be the most popular stamp design from Canada, depicting the fishing schooner 'Bluenose' is certainly a very attractive stamp deserving of praise, not only for it's design but also for it's superb engraving.

A celebrated racing ship and hard-working fishing vessel, Bluenose became a provincial icon for Nova Scotia as well as important Canadian symbol in the 1930s. The name "bluenose" originated as a nickname for Nova Scotians from as early as the late 18th century.

The subject of the stamp was built in 1921 as Nova Scotia's challenger for the "International Trophy", a working boats' version of the prestigious 'America's Cup', she won on her first attempt in 1921. The boat then maintained an unbeaten run for the next 17 years including the last event, held in 1938.

In 1942 she was sold to a freight carrier and taken to work in the West Indies where in 1946 she foundered on a reef near Haiti and broke up. This iconic boat was honoured by being placed in the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame in 1955 and in 1983 a full scale replica, 'Bluenose II', was built and is now used as Nova Scotia's sailing ambassador.

Schooner: A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts.

Such vessels were first used by the Dutch in the 16th or 17th century (but may not have been called that at the time). The development of the schooner is connected with that of the Bermuda sloop. In Bermuda, countless vessels of otherwise identical description were built with between one and three masts, carrying Gaff or Bermuda rig. Although Bermudians generally describe all as sloops, purists elsewhere limit that term to single-masted vessels, those with more than one mast being historically described as Ballyhoo schooners. Schooners were further developed in North America from the early 18th century, and were more widely used in the United States than in any other country.

Two-masted schooners were and are most common. They were popular in trades that required speed and windward ability, such as slaving, privateering, and blockade running. They were also traditional fishing boats, used for offshore fishing. They were favoured as pilot vessels, both in the United States and in Northern Europe. In the Chesapeake Bay area several distinctive schooner types evolved, including the Baltimore clipper and the pungy.

Click here to read more about the Bluenose.

Source: Sandafayre auctions newsletter and Wikipedia

$1 Coin - Royal Canadian Navy Centennial - 2010

Year of Issue: 2010
Composition: nickel electroplated with bronze
Finish
Weight (g): 7.0
Diameter (mm): 26.5
Artists: Bonnie Ross (reverse), Suzanna Blunt (obverse)

A new one-dollar circulation coin immortalizing the centennial of the Canadian Navy, proudly produced by the Royal Canadian Mint, was unveiled by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada and Commander-in-Chief of the Canadian Forces.

The coin depicts a serviceman with the 1910 uniform and a female officer with a modern day uniform, to represent the men and women in the Naval service. The ship represented is HMCS Halifax, the lead ship in the Navy’s current fleet. The fouled anchor is part of the centennial identifier image in use to recognize the 100th anniversary of the Navy.

In addition to releasing this commemorative circulation coin, the Canadian Mint  also offers a selection of sterling silver coins featuring the famous corvette HMCS Sackville launched in January 2010. This includes:

    * a 2010 Proof Silver Dollar at $52.95 CDN (mintage of 50,000);
    * a Brilliant Uncirculated Silver Dollar at $46.95 CDN (mintage of 30,000); and
    * a selectively gold-plated Proof Silver Dollar exclusive to the 2010 Proof Set at $109.95 CDN (limited to 55,000 sets)

Click here to see the miniature sheet issued by Canada Post to commemorate the Royal Canadian Navy Centenary.

Click here to see other coins with ships in my collection.

Source: CoinNews.net, mint.ca

SS Sardinian

Date of Issue: September 01, 2010
Design: Debbie Adams
Paper Type: Tullis Russell
Printing Process: Lithography in 6 colors plus varnish.

Canada Post issued a stamp in honor of British Home Children. Starting in 1869, and continuing into the years following the Second World War, more than 100,000 orphaned, abandoned and pauper children were sent to Canada by British churches and philanthropic organizations.

At the bottom of the stamp is depicted SS Sardinian, a steam ship built by Allan Line of Canada, which carried some children from Liverpool to Canada.

I thank my friend, Emilia at Canada, for the stamp and also the envelope with three stamps posted on day of issue.

Source: Canada Post

William Hall, V.C. and HMS Shannon

Date of Issue:  February 01, 2010

This is the official FDC of William Hall plus some extra stamps of my theme to cover airmail postage. I thank Ms. Laura again for this fantastic cover.

William Hall was born circa 1825 to African-American parents who had been liberated from the U.S. slave trade. He launched his seafaring career at a young age, first joining the crew of an American trading vessel in 1844. In 1852, he enlisted in the British Royal Navy as an able seaman.

In 1857, while serving on the HMS Shannon, Hall volunteered with a relief force sent to Lucknow, India, where a British garrison was besieged by mutineers. Two survived the attack, Seaman Hall and Lieutenant Thomas Young, but only Hall was left standing, and he continued to fight until the relief of the garrison was assured. For this outstanding display of bravery, he was awarded the Victoria Cross.

On the stamp, Hall is shown against a seascape, with the HMS Shannon in the background. He is wearing his Victoria Cross, the Indian Mutiny Medal, the Turkish Crimea Medal and the Crimea Medal.

Click here to learn more about the stamp in detail from Canada Post site.

HMS Shannon - HMS Shannon was a Liffey-class steam frigate of the Royal Navy.

Under the command of Sir William Peel, Shannon played an important role in the Indian Mutiny landing a naval brigade which fought at the Siege of Lucknow, including the Storming of the Sikandar Bagh. Five Victoria Crosses were won by the following crew of HMS Shannon: Lieutenant Thomas Young, Lieutenant Nowell Salmon, Leading Seaman John Harrison, Able Seaman Edward Robinson and Able Seaman William Hall, the first Black person and the first Canadian sailor to be awarded a Victoria Cross.

Click here to know more about HMS Shannon at Wikipedia.

Source: Canada Post and Wikipedia

Seal of New Brunswick

Date of Issue: August 16, 1934
Scott #: 210

This 2 cents stamp was issued to commemorate 150th anniversary of the founding of the Province of New Brunswick.

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only constitutionally bilingual province (English and French) in the federation (see at right for location of New Brunswick in map of Canada).

The Motto, "SPEM REDUXIT" is commonly translated as 'Hope Restored', representing the establishment of New Brunswick as a 'home for refugee settlers' when a vast influx of United Empire Loyalists flowed into the area following their expulsion from the newly-formed United States in 1784.

The name of the 18th century ship depicted in this stamp is unknown. It must be one of the vessels that brought Loyalists to the province from the former American colonies.

Text source: Wikipedia, sympatico.ca, and crwflags.com

Cover #3 from Canada

Ms. Laura Termes keeps on surprising me with ship stamps on envelope from Canada. This is my third cover from Canada as well as the third from Ms. Laura.

A perfect cover for my collection and on my theme.

Thank you very much friend.

100 years of Canadian Navy 1910 - 2010

Date of Issue: May 04, 2010

Canada Post issued a set of two stamps and a souvenir sheet to commemorate 100 years of Canadian Navy.

Received this souvenir sheet on enveloped posted on day of issue by Ms. Laura Termes, Canada.

Excerpts from the Canada Post website - “The aim of the Canadian Naval Centennial is to build and strengthen in Canadians an appreciation for their navy and to promote the role of the navy within the Canadian Forces in a maritime nation like Canada. The theme is to “Bring the Navy to Canadians” and the issue of a set of stamps to honour this national institution is most fitting,” says Vice-Admiral Dean McFadden, Chief of the Maritime Staff. “A stamp tells a story and will create a public awareness of the role that the Canadian Navy has played both in war and in peace over the past 100 years. These stamps will be visible reminders that the country is served by men and women of the naval service who safeguard Canada and her values.” The flag at the right is the Canadian Navy flag.

The Naval Service Act brought the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) into being on May 4, 1910. The first day cancellation was done in Ottawa, home to the Canadian Navy’s headquarters.

The two ships depicted on the sheet are HMS Niobe and HMCS Halifax (K237).

HMS Niobe - HMS Niobe was a ship of the Diadem-class of protected cruiser in the Royal Navy. She served in the Boer War and was then given to Canada to form part of their first independent navy as HMCS Niobe. After patrol duties at the beginning of the First World War, she became a depot ship in Halifax. Damaged in the 1917 Halifax Explosion, she was scrapped in the 1920s.

HMCS Halifax - HMCS Halifax (K237) was a Royal Canadian Navy Flower-class corvette which took part in convoy escort duties during World War II. She was laid down at Collingwood Shipyards Ltd., Collingwood on 26 April 1941 and launched on 4 October of that year. She was commissioned into the RCN 6 weeks later on 26 November.

Halifax was decommissioned from the RCN on 12 July 1945 and sold later that year as the mercantile Halifax.

Source: Canada Post website and Wikipedia

Cover #2 from Canada

This is my second cover from Canada and also the second cover sent by blogger Ms. Laura Termes, Canada. Thank you friend for such a lovely cover with full of ship stamps. There are no words to express joy when I saw the ship stamp issued in 1949 on the envelope. This cover definitely will have a special place in my stamp album.

Tall ships in Halifax Harbor

Date of Issue: July 19, 2000
Scott #: 1864, 1865

A breathtaking view in a pair of self-adhesive stamps in serpentine die-cut, showing numerous tall ships at Halifax Harbor, a large natural harbor on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada.

Ships of Canada - 1978 14c

Date of Issue: November 15, 1978
Scott #: 776 - 779

These are the fourth and last in the series - Ships of Canada, depicted as ice vessels.

Chief Justice Robinson - Built in 1842 as a wooden side-wheel steamboat, named after Sir John Beverley Robinson (1791-1863), who became a Chief Justice and Speaker of the Canadian Legislative Council in 1829. She was designed with an ingenious form of hull, characterized by a plough-shaped ram, when sailing in ice would give the ice an upward thrust, then throw it outward on each side of the ram. She was not an icebreaker in modern terms. She was an very comfortable passenger vessel, used in a six-day service between Toronto and Niagara.

St. Roch - She was special built for the Arctic regions as a supply and detachment ship. Her diesel engine provided also heat for the well-insulated accommodation. Horizontal and vertical beams in the main hold supported the sides of the ship from the strength of the ice. Her hull was made of Douglas fir, sheated with Australian ironwood. In 1940 when Canada was at war she was refitted, and she sailed out in June under command of Sergeant Henry Larsen that year from Vancouver for a voyage through the mostly uncharted Northwest Passage to Halifax.

Northern Light - Built in 1876 as a wooden hulled ferry-icebreaker for the ferry service between Georgetown and Pictou on the Northumberland Strait. When Prince Edwards Island was brought in to Canada, the terms or agreement implied a year round ferry service. Built of wood it was thought that ice would not puncture the wood, also the hull was very rounded, and the weight of the vessel would break the ice. She was a odd looking craft. With a roman nose rather than a ram.

Labrador - Built during 1948 - 1953, and commissioned in 1954, as an icebreaker by Mil Tracy Marine Industries at Sorel, Canada for the Canadian Ministry of Transport. She was the first warship, which voyage to negotiate the Northwest Passage across the top of the continent; she visited homeward bound San Francisco, Panama City and Grenada. In 1958 due to manpower shortage, the Navy withdrew from the Arctic, and the LABRADOR was transferred to the Coast Guard. The Labrador served with the coast Guard for 29 years.

Text Source: Ships of Canada by Thomas Appleton, and shipstamps.co.uk

Ships of Canada - 1977 12c

Date of Issue: November 18, 1977

Scott #: 744 - 747

Third set in the series, Ships of Canada - depicted here are sail ships.

Pinky - Emerging around 1815 as a fishing schooner, the pinky quickly achieved popularity because of her carrying capacity, comfort and seaworthiness. Two such boats were among the few smacks to withstand a ferocious gale in Chaleur Bay in October 1851. The craft was also particularly adept at mackerel fishing, since it could pursue schools of these creatures as they swam windward.

Tern Schooner - A North American 3-masted or "tern" schooner, which generally had a high carrying capacity but a low speed. The First World War stimulated demands for faster models. Nova Scotia boat-builders combined the modern fishing schooner's hull with the 3-masted fore and aft rig to produce a streamlined type of craft. They had a high attrition rate, several being lost on their maiden voyages. They were originally built in the 19th century, and over the years, terns pried the South American, West Indian, Mediterranean and coastal routes, trading in salt, fish, gypsum, lumber, and sugar.

Mackinaw - Sometime in the 1870s a man from the Atlantic coast of Canada named Carmichael turned up in Collingwood, Ontario, and ordered a boat to be built to his specifications: ketch rigged, double-ended, clincher-built, in the 25 to 35ft. range. It was a new type of craft to the Georgian Bay area. The Mackinaw boat, as it came to be known, impressed the locals and became popular in the remote fishing camps of Lakes Huron, Michigan, and Superior and even Lake Winnipeg, Hudson Bay and the Fraser River.

Five-masted schooner - The name of the ship on this stamp is unknown. In 1917-18, 12 five-masted auxiliary schooners were ordered, and six came from the Wallace Shipyard in North Vancouver, six more from the Cameron Genoa Mills at Victoria, while Lyall Shipbuilding of North Vancouver laid down a batch to their own account for sale on speculation. Some had top masts and upper sails, but most became 'bald headed' and were left with stump masts. The last one to survive among the 12 was The Malahat, which became highly successful as a rum-runner in the 1920's and when she was wrecked in 1944, the five-masted Canadian schooner became another extinct species in the long history of sail.

Text Source: Ships of Canada by Thomas Appleton and shipstamps.co.uk

Ships of Canada - 1976 10c

Date of Issue: November 19, 1976

Scott #: 700 - 703

This is the second set of four stamps in the series - Ships of Canada. These are mentioned as Inland vessels.

Northcote - In 1874, above Grand Rapids, on the Saskatchewan River, the Hudson's Bay Company launched the Northcote, a Mississippi style river vessel. The Northcote acted as a Canadian gunboat and hospital ship during the Saskatchewan rebellion.

Passport - The Passport was built in England in 1846 and reassembled at Kingston, Ontario. She plied the Hamilton-Montreal passenger route and was described in 1850 as being "fitted up in the most modern style". Shooting the rapids of the St. Lawrence was the greatest thrill of the voyage. The ship attained speeds of 20 miles an hour with her engines shut down.

Chicora - The Chicora was built at Liverpool, by Miller, in 1864, and was an iron paddle steamer. In 1870 she helped carry the military expedition heading for Manitoba in the aftermath of the Riel affair. She ended her career as the coal barge Warrenko, in Kingston, Ontario harbour, where she eventually sank in 1942.

Athabasca - The Canadian Pacific Railway entered the Upper Great Lakes shipping business with three steel sister ships, the Alberta, Algoma and Athabasca, the latter vessel being the ship depicted on the stamp. She was built by Aitken and Mansel at Glasgow, in 1883, and was a steel screw steamer. The three ships steamed to Montreal M1883 and had to be sliced in half to fit the lock system. Reassembled at Buffalo, they arrived at Owen Sound in May 1884 ready for the lakehead run. They were the first "lakers" to be equipped with electric light and were so well constructed that people believed "that 20ft. could have been ripped off the bow of the ships without endangering their seaworthiness". Besides normal passenger traffic, they transported troops returning from the 1885 Riel Rebellion and carried grain. She was only scrapped after the Second World War.

Text Source: Ships of Canada, by Thomas Appleton, and shipstamps.co.uk

Ships of Canada - 1975 8c

Date of Issue: September 24, 1975

Scott #: 670 - 673

This set of four stamps was the first in the series - Ships of Canada. These are mentioned as Coastal Ships.

W.D. Lawrence - A three-masted full-rigged ship, named after her builder and owner, William D. Lawrence, at Maitland. At the time of her launch she was the largest sailing vessel of the world. (there was a other larger sailing vessel but she was a conversion of a steam vessel). I am glad to know that this ship has visited Calcutta and Cochin, in India during 1880 - 1884.

Beaver - A wooden paddle steamer, built in 1834, was the first steamship in the North Pacific. She made her first voyage by sail because she could not carry enough coal to go under steam. The vessel overcame American competition on the coast, thus helping not only to trade furs but to carry passengers and cargo to transport cattle, to tow log booms and barges and to conduct surveys.

Quadra - A single deck, steel, screw steamship built in 1891, named after Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra, a famous Spanish explorer. She was employed in servicing aids to navigation, supporting government administration, surveying, transporting officials and dignitaries and of policing the sealing and fishing industries.

Neptune - A barque-rigged, wooden, screw steamer built in 1872. She was engaged in the Newfoundland sealing industry and during her career brought in over a million pelts. In 1884, the Canadian Government chartered the Neptune for surveys in Hudson's Bay. There was a proposal that a railway be built from the prairies to the bay to open a new route for the export of grain. An expedition set up ice observation posts and sought a potential railway terminus. Three years later, the Government of Canada chartered the Neptune for the winter mail run to Prince Edward Island. The scheme failed because although the vessel could withstand ice pressure, she was not an icebreaker. Early in this century, the Neptune returned to the Arctic to help establish Canadian sovereignty there.

Source: Ships of Canada, by Thomas Appleton

Ships of Canada - Booklet

Today I would like to share info on a 100-page booklet which I received as a swap item from Mr. John Dawn, exchange partner who resides in Nova Scotia, Canada.

I am happy and proud to possess this booklet, Ships of Canada - Heritage Stamp Collection, which was issued in 1978 by Canada Post. Ships of Canada is a famous series of set of four stamps issued during the years 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1978.

There is a very detailed information regarding the importance and significance of these ships which have been a part of the growth and development of Canada as a whole. One can see numerous pictures, paintings, chart, etc., along with the history linked to them.

Thank you Mr. John. This is my first booklet in my collection and will remember you whenever I see this booklet :)

Please see images of stamps of individual years in separate posts.

Quebec City - 400th Anniversary

Date of Issue: May 16, 2008

This is a Joint issue between France and Canada to commemorate 400 years of founding of Quebec City in Canada, an earlier French settlement.

The stamp depicts an extraordinarily detailed scene: Champlain on his ship greets natives approaching in a canoe, while construction of the new settlement proceeds in the background.

This stamp is printed entirely using intaglio process except the date '1608'.

Technical Details:
Design: Fugazi
Dimensions: 39.7 mm x 40 mm (vertical)
Gum Type: P.V.A.
Illustration: Francis Back
Paper Type: Tullis Russell
Perforations: 13+
Printer: Canadian Bank Note
Tagging: General, 4 sides
Quantity: 2,500,000
Engraving: Jorge Peral

Engraving this stamp took nine weeks of work, spread over five months.

Matthew - Ship of John Cabot

Date of Issue: April 01, 1949
Scott #: 282

This stamp was issued to commemorate the entry of Newfoundland into confederation with Canada.

The ship depicted in the stamp is "Matthew," a caravel sailed by John Cabot (Giovanni Caboto), an Italian navigator and explorer working under contract to England on his expedition from Bristol, England to North America, presumably Newfoundland in 1497. This discovery is considered by historians as having laid the initial foundation of the British Empire.

John Cabot was commonly credited as the first European to discover North America.